This thread started out as "One Day Hike - First Timer Questions", but has taken on a new life with the idea of counting all the switchbacks for the entire MMWT (Main Mt Whitney Trail). Wayne Pyle has an excellent count of the notorious 97 switchers between Trail Crest and Trail Camp, but now we're talking about counting all the others.
So the thread now has a new subject. The old thread is here:
One Day Hike - First Timer Questions--Steve C.
Posted by Versatile Fred:
wbtravis,
I was convinced that someone had moved the parking lot down the mountain towards Lone Pine while we were hiking. It wasn't any better the second time either . . . those last 3 miles are simply the most unending, brain-teasing, strength sapping ever! But as soon as you enter the Portal, it all just melts away!
On my first trip, I did a preliminary hike up to LP Lake and counted the 24 switchbacks in the John Muir Wilderness between the trees and the sign. Little did I know that I would be counting them on the way down in the dark on the actual hike. That is one way to keep your brain active.
